Zechariah 9-11
Can you feel how close it is? Just two more days, and we will be finished with the Old Testament! Are you excited? I know I am.
Today’s passage is tricky. Parts of it seem to extend into the “last days,” other parts point to Jesus’ first coming, and still others seem to apply to Zechariah’s day! It’s best to read Zechariah with a good resource, like the time-tested NIV Study Bible.
Zechariah 9. The first eight verses track the destruction of Israel’s oppressive neighbors. This prophecy may have been fulfilled by Alexander the Great in 333 BC. Then Zechariah tells the daughters of the Jerusalem to rejoice, not because of their enemies’ demise, but because of their coming King, the Messiah, humbling riding a donkey (9:9) and powerfully proclaiming peace (9:10), as Jesus did at his first coming. But almost immediately, the prophet seems to be speaking of the Second Coming of Christ, and of his rule on earth! By the end of the chapter, there is judgment; but the Lord will save his people!
Zechariah 10 speaks of a day when the Lord himself will Shepherd his people. Their leaders (shepherds) have let them down. The true Shepherd, the “Cornerstone,” the Lord Jesus himself will strengthen, save and restore the people.
Zechariah 11 begins with a taunt or a lament over the destruction of the region’s livelihood. The rest of the chapter gives the reasons for this judgment. Though the Messiah had intended “favor” and “union,” symbolized by two staffs, the people rejected him, like Judas (Note the “30 pieces of silver” reference), and the staffs were broken. Nothing good will come of this rejection.
Your fellow pilgrim through the prophets,
Pastor Gary
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